Labor

Tim Cook got almost $400 million of restricted stock when he was named Apple chief executive in 2011, succeeding Steve Jobs. Regardless of whether Apple shareholders fared well or badly over the grant’s 10-year term, all Cook needed to do to collect that stock (worth about $700 million at today’s price) was keep his job. It was the kind of deal that pay mavens derisivelycall “pay for pulse.”

A campaign by some of America’s biggest companies to “opt out” of state workers’ compensation — and write their own plans for dealing with injured workers — was dealt a major blow Friday when an Oklahoma commission ruled the alternative system unconstitutional.

A group of Uber drivers calling themselves Uber Drivers United staged a protest in San Francisco recently, driving slowly from the former Candlestick Park, to the airport, through the city, and eventually to Uber headquarters while honking their horns and disrupting traffic. The issue for the drivers, most of whom will not release their names, is they are earning less than half of what they earned when they joined the company, meaning that many now earn below the minimum wage.

The editorial board of the Orange County Register decided to kick off 2016 by going full 1916. How did a paper of record turn the clocks back so? By questioning the motives of professional cheerleaders who are seeking employee (rather than independent contractor) status. The Register suggests that “they receive the fringe benefits of being surrounded by men who earn on average $1.9 million in the NFL and $5 million in the NBA” and should thus shut their damsel traps.

Many people have come to believe politicians say what they need to say to win, and then turn on them. If Hillary Clinton wants to win the Democratic nomination and inspire people to vote for her in the general election, she must find ways to overcome this voter skepticism. There is one test that, if she passes it, could convince voters that Clinton is on their side. It involves what Clinton does over the next few months to prove that she meant it when she came out in opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal a few weeks ago.

As the Supreme Court prepares to hear its most important organized labor case of the year, Friedrichs vs. California Teachers Association, a group of 21 state Attorneys General have announced a plan to officially support the labor union side. Among those taking the lead in the effort to file a brief in the case is New York AG Eric Schneiderman who, along with Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen and a group of elected officials and many labor leaders, formally announced their plan on Sunday at New York City Hall.

While many small businesses see this as a complex topic, the National Restaurant Association (the other NRA) primarily lobbies for fast food chains across the country to block minimum wage increases and also works against laws for earned paid sick leave or other benefits.

Denver University is “the oldest independent institution of higher education in the Rocky Mountain region,” its website boasts. Absent from the page detailing the university’s rich history is the fact that female faculty have been paid less than their male counterparts for more than a century.

A recent Gallup poll shows that America’s support for labor unions has jumped 5 percent in the past year, bringing it to 58 percent. This is the highest such figure since 2008 when 59 percent approved. The poll was conducted between August 5th and 9th and is part of Gallup’s annual Work and Education survey. The numbers show an improving image of unions which had reached an all-time low in 2009 after the government bailout of the big three auto companies.

Over the weekend, bus drivers at Compass Transportation entered the Teamsters union hall in San Leandro, California and voted 75 to 0 to approve a three-year contract. It includes solid raises as well as improved schedules and benefits. The drivers joined Teamsters Local 853 in February and began negotiating the influential deal. Their victory is part of a larger movement — recently coined “Silicon Valley Rising” — in which labor unions, community groups, and churches have improved wages and conditions for the region’s service workers. The nearly 200 bus drivers employed by Compass provide shuttle services to companies such as Apple, eBay, Yahoo, Evernote, Genentech, Zynga, and Amtrak.